COPE
Community Orienteering and Protection of the Environment
This 2-year development project in upper Deeside and Donside will provide an exciting opportunity for the local community to get involved in orienteering in the lead up to 2 major events; the Scottish 6 Days 2017 and 2018 British Orienteering Championships, both of which will be held in Deeside.
Project manager and Mar Orienteering Club coach, Sarah Dunn, will work with schools in Braemar, Crathie, Ballater and Strathdon as well as youth groups at the heart of the community to stage activities and also to help train leaders to sustain activities into the future. Orienteering is a sport that can be enjoyed at every level from a recreational adventure through the woods to a high intensity physically and mentally challenging race. At every level the sport has environmental appreciation at its heart and one of the big attractions is an opportunity to explore hidden and wild places, with different routes set at every event.
Outdoor recreation has been identified as the best way to build relationships between people and nature and by initiating these activities at an early age we are helping to foster a future generation that will have a desire to care for and protect the environment into the future. Orienteering is exemplary as a sport in terms of its respect for the environment and working around environmental constraints, whilst at the same time a big appeal for newcomers is the opportunity to explore hidden and wild places which they have never visited before.
There are some fantastic locations in Deeside where orienteering can take place and it is hoped that the introductory sessions will encourage more of the local community to take up the opportunity to participate in the events to be staged on their doorstep during 2017 and 2018.
For further information about the project, please e-mail
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